A young programmer is selected to participate in a ground-breaking experiment in synthetic intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a highly advanced humanoid A.I.A young programmer is selected to participate in a ground-breaking experiment in synthetic intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a highly advanced humanoid A.I.A young programmer is selected to participate in a ground-breaking experiment in synthetic intelligence by evaluating the human qualities of a highly advanced humanoid A.I.
- Won 1 Oscar
- 74 wins & 161 nominations total
- Jasmine
- (as Symara Templeman)
- Amber
- (as Lina Alminas)
- Office Worker
- (uncredited)
- Office Worker
- (uncredited)
- Office Manager
- (uncredited)
- Director
- Writer
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaThe location of the house in the movie is the Juvet Landscape Hotel in Norway.
- GoofsWhen Ava and Kyoko meet in the corridor, there are masks on the wall. At the end of the scene, the masks are gone. Correction: The camera angle is not a reverse shot along the same corridor with the masks. The camera has moved to where Kyoto is standing, turned 90 degrees right and is looking down the corridor she came from. When Nathan finds them, he is looking from the other end of the corridor where Kyoto came from.
- Quotes
Nathan: One day the AIs are going to look back on us the same way we look at fossil skeletons on the plains of Africa. An upright ape living in dust with crude language and tools, all set for extinction.
Caleb: I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.
Nathan: There you go again, Mr. Quotable.
Caleb: There you go again. It's not my quote. It's what Oppenheimer said after he made
Nathan, Caleb: The atomic bomb.
Nathan: Yeah, I know what it is, dude.
- Crazy creditsThe end credits starts with a single dot in the background which then grows and various patterns emerge from it.
- Alternate versionsThe alternatively censored cut released in China featured frequent blurs of nudity and, on occasion, violence. One scene towards the end also seemed to be zoomed for no apparent reason.
- ConnectionsFeatured in Film '72: Episode #44.2 (2015)
- SoundtracksSchubert Piano Sonata No.21 in B Flat Major, D.960
Composed by Franz Schubert
Performed by Alfred Brendel
Courtesy of Decca
Under license from Universal Music Operations Limited
Despite contributing several scripts for the screen, this is writer Alex Garland's first directorial effort. It's a hard sci-fi movie which examines concepts and ideas above everything else. That's not to say it isn't dramatic or even thrilling because it is both of those things as well but the focus is squarely on the science fiction speculation, and this is a very welcome thing. The central concept that it examines is artificial intelligence. How we interact with AI as humans, as well as how a seductive machine could in turn manipulate us. The very well written script poses philosophical questions such as is there moral or immoral ways to treat AI. It also considers if sometimes part of being human is that we sometimes subconsciously want to be fooled by an illusion, if it is attractive enough.
In many ways Ex Machina resembles last years Under the Skin. Both feature highly advanced female non-humans. In the earlier film Scarlett Johansson played an alien, here Alicia Vikander plays an android. While the very small cast all acquit themselves very well, it is Vikander who stands out in the film's most challenging role. It's a nuanced performance that captures the fine balance between the human-like and machine. Not only this but the marvellous special effects compliment this performance to create a very distinctive character. Aside from the effects, this is probably quite a modestly budgeted film, as the small little-known cast and limited sets suggest. But these restrictions have been used to the films advantage, as the unknown cast surprise more given little is known of them and the restricted setting gives off a claustrophobic feel which works well, while forcing us to focus in even more on the ideas being put in front of us. A scene setting ambient soundtrack additionally creates just the right off-kilter mood to accentuate the events. But it's ultimately the very good writing that underpins the success of this film. All-in-all, very impressive science fiction for those who appreciate the genre's more cerebral side.
- Red-Barracuda
- Jan 24, 2015
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Official sites
- Language
- Also known as
- Người Máy Trỗi Dậy
- Filming locations
- Juvet Landscape Hotel, Alstad, Valldal, Norway(Nathan's mountain retreat)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Budget
- $15,000,000 (estimated)
- Gross US & Canada
- $25,442,958
- Opening weekend US & Canada
- $237,264
- Apr 12, 2015
- Gross worldwide
- $37,394,629
- Runtime1 hour 48 minutes
- Color
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1